The Possibility of Power
by OnceUponALostie
Summary: In a powerless world, power is everything. Rachel Matheson, a scientist, holds the key to turning the power back on. But will her knowledge get everyone she loves killed?
1. Chapter One

The sun shone through the window and fell upon Rachel Matheson's eyes. She stirred in the bed and groaned. Her eyes fluttered open, letting in the light. Rachel squinted at the brightness of the sun as she pushed herself up. The curtains swayed with the wind coming through the open window. She flicked the blankets off her body and swung her legs to the edge of the bed. Rachel's head turned to the sound of the door creaking open. In strutted Bass Monroe, leader of the Monroe Militia. He let the doors slam behind him as he walked up to her. "Good morning, Rachel." Bass had a smug grin stuck to his face, a grin that made Rachel want to slap it off him. He tilted his head at her as his smile diminished. "I have a little surprise for you. Come with me." Rachel stared intensely at him as she hated the way he spoke to her. Reluctantly, Rachel planted her feet on the cold wood floor and stood from the bed. Monroe waved his hand up and down, gesturing at her outfit. "You may want to get dressed." He smirked again. "I'll be outside the doors when you're ready." Rachel nodded gently at him as he turned to exit her bedroom. The doors slammed against their hinges, leaving Rachel to herself. She looked around the candle and sun lit room, hoping there would be a day she wouldn't have to see it. Rachel's feet pounded against the wood as she ventured over to her dresser. Opening the top drawer, she pulled out a light grey silk shirt. After setting it on top of her dresser, she went to the next drawer and fetched a pair of blue jeans. They were dull and worn, unlike her top which had been given to her by Bass. She traced the lining of the jeans and sighed. She remembered when there was a time that people made jeans. When people made anything. When they had things that made their lives easier. When they were able to entertain their children with TV and games. A time when people had power. Rachel reached into her drawer and fished around. She grabbed something and carefully pulled it out, looking around to make sure no one was watching. In the palm of her hand, she held a pendant. She held power; and that was something she could never let Bass get.


	2. Chapter Two

_Authors Note: So, the reason this took so long to update was because I was contemplating whether I was actually going to post it due to the content inside.__** I wouldn't read it if you're sensitive to abuse.**__ (It's my theory about what Strausser did to Rachel.)_

Rachel stared at the back of Monroe's head as she followed him to her 'surprise'. They walked through a blackened tunnel, the floors were mud and the walls looked to be decaying. She slowly turned her head to look behind her. Two of Monroe's men were close behind her. Both wielding guns. She sighed and straightened her head. "We're almost there Rachel." Bass glanced back at her and gave her a smug grin. She waited until he looked away to roll her eyes at his torments.

"Bass, about time you showed up." Rachel's body trembled when she recognized the voice that had spoken. A mix of anger and scare bubbled up to her skin. She felt her walking slow and almost come to a halt. One of the men behind her jabbed her slightly. Rachel gathered herself and started to move again.

"I would have been here sooner, but I had some matters to attend to." Bass stopped in front of the man. Rachel stopped as well, but was sure to keep her distance. She avoided looking into his eyes but she could feel them staring at her. "Rachel, aren't you going to say hello to Strausser?" Monroe touched her arm gently; Rachel pulled away from his touch and looked up from the ground.

"You're a son of a bitch, you know that?" Rachel made no attempt to hold in her anger. Bass looked at her with eyes like daggers. He scowled and turned to face her. Strausser stayed leaning against the wall, not taking his view off Rachel.

"That was very rude, Rachel." Bass moved closer to her, his frown growing more and more intense. Rachel gazed at Monroe, using everything she could to contain her emotions. "Apologize." Bass demanded, inching even closer to Rachel. She grew tense and tried to step away. Defiantly, she shook her head.

"No." Rachel continued to shake as she drew away from Monroe. Knowing full well, he could kill her right there. She sucked her lips in and squinted her eyes softly. Monroe continued to move in towards her. Rachel felt herself press against the cold bricks of the tunnel. She winced as she could no longer move away from Bass. He got so close to her she could feel his breath in her face.

"Apologize, Rachel." Monroe's face grew even more stern. Rachel turned her head to Strausser and looked cruelly upon him.

"I'm sorry." She said sourly. Rachel wanted to be sick when he gave her a smile.

"It's alright Peach, you can make it up to me later." His smirk grew as he gave her a wink. Rachel's lip quivered and she looked away quickly.

"Bass, where are we going?" She watched as he drew away from her. Rachel's body relaxed as she pulled away from the stone wall. Monroe laughed at her question and shook his head. She furrowed her brow and blinked at him.

"Do you really think I would tell you that?" His smug smile returned. Rachel clenched her fists and ran her thumbs over them. He tossed his head to the side. "Let's get on with it." Bass turned away from Rachel and ventured on. Rachel shuffled her feet against the muddy floor. She continued to observe the walls and thought about where they were taking her. Better yet, what were they going to do? Rachel let her thoughts wander as she blindly followed the two men, if you wanted to call them that.

Lost in her thoughts, Rachel didn't notice when they had exited the tunnel and entered the bright sunlight. She snapped back into focus when she almost ran into Monroe. The sun shone down on them and warmed Rachel's skin. She found herself squinting at the light. "I want you to wait here." Bass turned around to face her. Rachel's lips parted as if she were to say something. "And, if you don't stay put, I'll hand you over to Will." Rachel's eyes widened and she grew uneasy. Bass noticed the restlessness and nodded. He turned on his heel and headed off to a nearby hill. Rachel grabbed her arm with one hand and rubbed her shoulder. Her mind raced as all the possibilities of what Bass was doing came into her head. She felt a hand on her shoulder, a stern one. She looked down at it tentatively and quickly pushed it off quickly. Rachel turned and stepped away from Strausser.

"Don't touch me." Rachel's face filled with fury. Strausser grinned at her, his eyes filled with want. She took another step back, almost tripping over a stone.

"You don't get it, do you sweetheart? Monroe doesn't have anything for you, he led you out here so I could get a moment with you." He chuckled. Rachel's face scrunched as she tried to hold back her anger, her frustration, and her urge to break down into tears. She hadn't even noticed that the two men that followed her through the tunnels had left with Bass.

"Stay away from me. Don't come anywhere near me you sick fuck." Rachel put her hands in front of her and took another step back, not taking her eyes from him. Will countered her steps and drew closer to her. Her arms fell slightly as she gently shook her hands. "Strausser, please. Don't do this." Rachel began to fail at holding her tears back- as one rolled down her cheek. Strausser grabbed at her arm and yanked her towards him. Rachel whimpered and flung her arms out at him, pushing him back. His grip remained firm, but she continued to fight his hold. Rachel swung her free arm at Will's face. Her nails scraped against his skin and he dropped her arm. Strausser reached for his cheek and cradled his wound.

"You bitch!" He spat. Strausser, with his reddened face, lunged for Rachel. She tried to get out of his way, but tripped on the stone she almost fell on earlier. She landed on the ground with a grunt. Will reached down but Rachel threw up her feet and kicked him off her. She crawled backwards on the ground, doing whatever she could to keep him away. "Don't play hard to get, Rachel." Strausser chuckled manically and flailed at her. He fell to his knees and grabbed her feet. Rachel tried kicking him off but he pulled her in.

"Let me go!" Rachel cried out, she sat up and tried pulling her feet out of his grip. He grinned at her and pulled her back even closer. Rachel continued to kick her feet at him. She looked at the ground around her and saw a shard of glass. Rachel could feel Will pulling at her jeans, she grabbed the shard. With a grunt, Rachel plunged the glass into Strausser's chest. He screamed and fell back as the glass pierced his body. Rachel crawled backwards and watched as his face fell to the dirt. She stood up from the dust and felt her face burn. Strausser lifted his head from the ground and stared at her with a grin.

"It's going to take a lot more than that to kill me baby." Rachel shook at his words and watched as he slowly brought himself up. He looked down at his stomach and frowned at the glass. Will grasped the weapon Rachel used and pulled it out. Blood dripped from the point as he held it. "Now that wasn't nice." He grinned at her. Rachel stood in the open, quivering and in tears.

"Please, just- leave me alone." Rachel begged. Will closed his eyes and shook his head. Rachel glanced down at her feet, noticing the rock she tripped over. She felt her body thrust back. Her head slammed against the ground. Laying limp, Rachel looked up to see Will sitting on top of her. Rachel shoved his face away from hers and with her other hand and made an attempt to grasp the rock. She tried to ignore Strausser's attempts to kiss her and kept feeling around the ground. "Get off me!" She demanded. A sigh of relief left her body when she found the rock. As she grabbed the stone and turned her head back to Will, he shoved his lips into hers. She winced and took the stone and slammed it into the side of his head. Strausser fell off her and rolled onto his back. His eyes were closed and he was still. Rachel dropped the rock on the ground and fell with it. She buried her face in her hands and let the tears go. Her shoulders shook as she sobbed.

After almost half an hour, Rachel lifted her face from her hands and wiped her eyes with her sleeves. Slowly, Rachel stood up and stared at Strausser's unconscious body. She sniffled and looked at the tunnel. She pushed her hair out of her face and looked around. There was no one, no one to make sure she would stay. No one to stop her from leaving.


End file.
